The Riverside Arts Walk is a free monthly community event that celebrates the diversity of arts and culture in Riverside and the Inland Empire. Visit over 22 downtown locations, including museums, galleries and studios, presenting an eclectic mix of visual and performing arts. And either before or after, enjoy the many entertainment, dining, and shopping experiences that downtown Riverside has to offer.

Councilmember Mike Soubirous

March 17, 2014

Edition #5

News Around The Ward

Economic growth is the big talk around City Hall. With our economy showing signs of growth – it is imperative that we as a city do all we can to encourage local business growth, cut unnecessary “red tape” and become as “user friendly” as we can in order to attract commerce to our City and to our region. These businesses create jobs, provide services and increased revenue for our City.

The Riverside Avenue railroad bridge/grade separation is under construction. With the closing of Riverside Avenue, our nearby residents are dealing with the fallout from the road closures. We are working closely with our residents, city staff and our contractor to smooth out the issues we are encountering. With proper signs, barricades and other traffic “calming” devices, we can hopefully educate our motoring public that they “really can’t get there from here” and not speed down adjacent streets trying to find a way over the railroad tracks.

The Riverside Plaza’s new Nordstrom Rack opens April 3rd, with Marshall’s and JoAnn’s soon after. We’ll keep you posted on those dates as well. The Plaza’s parking lot has been somewhat reconfigured and is looking good. Let’s hope these new stores bring economic prosperity to the Plaza’s many other shops and stores.

The City is looking at alternatives to the WiFi system currently installed on street lights around our City. The WiFi system is not cost effective and does not offer viable connectivity to the web. The City is looking at identifying public use WiFi connections at private locations, as well as considering one or two “trial” WiFi hotspots at two yet to be determined local libraries. These two hotspots would extend about 100 feet from the library property for use by mobile devices, laptops and tablets.

I am here to serve you and to advocate for Ward 3 residents with city staff. If you have concerns or just want to discuss issues – no matter how small – please contact me by phone at (951) 515-1663 or by email at msoubirous@riversideca.gov.You can also follow me on Facebook at “Councilman Mike Soubirous.”

Sincerely,

Mike Soubirous

If We Could See Inside Others' Hearts

Great video with application beyond the "hospital" setting. You just don't know what others are going through in life.

Harada House

The National Historic Landmark Harada House tells the story of the Harada Family and their struggles to achieve the American Dream. The site and story embody local, state, national, and international issues of civil and individual rights, democracy, immigration, assimilation, racial prejudice, and citizenship.It is truly an American story. The Harada House property, owned by the Riverside Metropolitan Museum (A department of the City of Riverside), is fragile and in need of significant repair. Furthermore, because it is located in a residential neighborhood, opening the House to the public for interpretation has its challenges. Recently, the house next door, referred to as the Robinson House, was put up for sale giving the Museum the opportunity to purchase the home to be used as an interpretive center for the Harada House. Not only will it function as an interpretive center, but it is also part of the Harada family's story.To purchase the house, the Museum had to raise $200,000 to buy the property and make it habitable. Want to learn more about the Harada family and their story? Visit the Harada House webpage.

Dancing with the Stars

Inland Empire Edition

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